Partitions

ABSTRACT

A partition, e.g. for use in railway coaches, in which supporting pillers are lined with facing panels, each of the pillers being constituted by two substantially U-shaped profiled sections disposed in opposite directions to one another. The web portion of at least one of the profiled sections, which web brings together its two flanges, extends beyond the flange located inside the other profiled section and does duty as a stop vis-a-vis the neighbouring flange of said profiled section. The present invention relates to partitions. The partitions which separate from one another the compartments of railway coaches, are currently manufactured of wood or composites, and possibly lined with facing panels on their external faces. The baggage racks which are assembled on these partitions, comprise a fixing plate attached to a wall plate. Two wall plates, each carrying a baggage rack with its fixing plate, are located at either side of a partition and attached to one another by bolts or similar elements, which pass right through the partition. Mirror frames or photograph frames are often provided and these frames attached to the external faces of the partitions. The fixing plates and the wall plates, as well as the possible frames for photographs or mirrors, project above the external faces of the partitions, and this constitutes a source of possible danger and detracts from the aesthetic appearance. It is virtually impossible to recess heating pipes and electrical conductors into a partition, and floor vibrations are transmitted to the partitions and to the seats attached to them. The object of the present invention is to provide a partition which can in particular be used as a compartment partition in railway coaches, and which overcomes the aforesaid drawbacks. The partition in accordance with the invention is formed by supporting pillers or uprights lines with facing panels, and is characterised in that each of the pillers or uprights is constituted by two substantially U-shaped profiled sections disposed in opposite directions to one another and fitted together, the web portion of at least one of the profiled sections, which web brings together its two flanges, extending beyond the flange located inside the other profiled section and doing duty as a stop vis-a-vis the neighbouring flange of said profiled section. Thanks to this arrangement, between the internal flange of the first profiled section and the adjacent flange of the second profiled section, which latter flange constitutes one of the external faces of the upright, a space is left in which there can be fitted the end of a supporting bracket, an opening being provided for this purpose, in one of the external faces of the upright. This bracket-end can be fixed to the upright for example using one or more bolts, without it being necessary to provide fixing plates or wall plates; because it is secured encastre in the upright, it cannot pivot and said encastre fixing is of course even more secure if said end passes through both external faces of the upright. Where a bracket is provided at either side of the partition, the two brackets can be independent of one another or may, on the other hand, be constituted by a single component whose centre section is located encastre in the upright. Since the bolts are concealed by the facing panels, no fixing element for the bracket or brackets, is visible and external faces of the partition can be perfectly smooth. The partition in accordance with the invention is much lighter than an ordinary partition because of the space which exists between the facing panels. This space may, if required, contain a sound-damping material such as glass wool and can also be utilised for the laying of fluid-transfer lines or electrical conductors. The sound-damping will be still further improved if the bottom part of each upright is fitted with a shock-absorber foot of elastomeric material. The facing panels can be adapted to accord with the intended application and the desired decoration. Where the partition is to have one or more frames for mirrors or photographs, these frames can be force-fitted in the facing panels. In accordance with a supplementary feature of the invention, the panel will comprise, opposite the opening designed to receive the frame, an internal profile designed to support said frame and the latter can be maintained in position by a surround force-fitted in said opening. The frame and its fixing means thus project hardly at all above the external face of the partition. As indicated hereinbefore, the invention can be applied in particular to the partitions between the compartments of railway coaches. It is clear, however, that the invention has a more general application too and could be applied in all situations where a partition is required which is equipped with brackets, these being designed for example to support shelves.

T United States Patent 1 91 Fan Oct. 16, 1973 [54] PARTITIONS 3,451,3576/1969 Barnard et al. 105/376 [76] Inventor: Maurice Fan, 32 avenueRaymond-Poincare, La Var n Primary Examiner-Gerald M. Forlenza Sui-make,F a Assistant Examiner-Richard A. Bertsch A t -A ld R b' 22 Filed: Sept.15, 1971 [211 App]. No.: 180,707 v ABSTRACT 30 F I A u u hi 1 D t Apartition, e.g. for use in railway coaches, in which ore gn pp ca on or!y a a porting pillers are lined with facing panels, each of the pillersbeing constituted by two substantially U- Sept' I970 France" "345-4502shaped profiled sections disposed in opposite direc- 52 us. c1 105/376,l08/l44, 248/354, 699819 one another- The web portion of at least one 25793 A of the profiled sections, which web brings together its 511 lm.(:1... 061017/00 two flanges, extends beyond the flange located inside58 Field of Search 105/376, 369 8,369 s, h other Profiled Section anddoes duty as a stop 105 374; 103 0 1 1 4; 24 217 354; a-vis theneighbouring flange of said profiled section.

254/93 A, 93R, 100 a 10 Claims, 10 Drawing Figures [56] References Citedv UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,095,830 7/1963 Runken lO5/3'I6 O 12a I D 12a 0h l c I w Q a M lc 1d 9 wmngnum 161975 I 3.765.342

HZET 18? 5 sum u m" UFNTEU [JCT 16 1975 8 mew F .iri E T- 15:11-

A wHH mm. 1 E H PARTITIONS The present invention relates to partitions.

The partitions which separate from one another the compartments ofrailway coaches, are currently manufactured of wood or composites, andpossibly lined with facing panels on .their external facesnThe baggageracks which are assembled on these partitions, comprise a fixing plateattached to a wall plate. Two wall plates, each carrying a baggage rackwith its fixing plate, are located at either side of a partition andattached to one another by bolts or similar elements, which pass rightthrough the partition. Mirror frames or photograph frames are oftenprovided and these frames attached to the external faces of thepartitions.

The fixing plates and the wall plates, as well as the possible framesfor photographs .or mirrors, project above the external faces of thepartitions, and this constitutes a source of possible danger anddetracts from the aesthetic appearance. It is virtually impossible torecess heating pipes and electrical conductors into a partition, andfloor vibrations are transmitted to the partitions and to the seatsattached to them.

The object of the present invention is to provide a partition which canin particular be used as a compartment partition in railway coaches, andwhich overcomes the aforesaid drawbacks.

The partition in accordance with the invention is formed by supportingpillers or uprights lines withfacing panels, and is characterised inthat each of the pillers or uprights is constituted by two substantiallyU shaped profiled sections disposed in opposite'directions to oneanother and fitted together, the web portion of at least one of theprofiled sections, which web brings together its two flanges, extendingbeyond the flange located inside the other profiled section and doingduty as a stop vis-a-vis the neighbouring flange of said profiledsection.

Thanks to this arrangement, between the internal flange of the firstprofiled section and the adjacent flange of the second profiled section,which latter flange constitutes one of the external faces of theupright, a space is left in which there can be fitted the end of asupporting bracket, an opening being provided for this purpose, in oneof the external faces of the upright. This bracket-end can be fixed tothe upright for example using one or more bolts, without it beingnecessary to provide fixing plates or wall plates; because it is securedencastre in the upright, it cannot pivot and said encastre fixing is ofcourse even more secure if said end passes through both external facesof the upright. Where a bracket is provided at either side of thepartition, the two brackets can be independent of one another or may, onthe other hand, be constituted by asingle component whose centre sectionis located encastre in the upright. Since the bolts are concealed by thefacing panels, no fixing element for the bracket or brackets, is visibleand external faces of the partition can be perfectly smooth.

The partition in accordance with the invention is much lighter than anordinary partition because of the space which exists between the facingpanels. This space may, if required, contain a sound-damping materialsuch as glass wool and can also be utilised for the laying offluid-transfer lines or electrical conductors. The sound-damping will bestill further improved if the bottom part of each upright is fitted witha shockabsorber foot of elastomeric material. The facing panels can beadapted to accord with the intended application and the desireddecoration.

Where the partition is to have one or more frames for mirrors orphotographs, these frames can be forcefitted in the facing panels. Inaccordance with a supplementary feature of the invention, the panel willcomprise, opposite the opening designed to receive the frame, aninternal profile designed to support said frame and the latter can bemaintained in position by a surround force-fitted in said opening. Theframe and its fixing means thus project hardly at all above the externalface of the partition.

As indicated hereinbefore, the invention can be applied in particular tothe partitions between the compartments of railway coaches. It is clear,however, that the invention has a more general application too and couldbe applied in all situations where a partition is required which isequipped with brackets, these being designed for example to supportshelves.

In the following, by way of non-limitative example, an embodiment of apartition in accordance with the invention has been described in thecontext of its applications to a railway coach, with reference to theattached drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a partition in accordance with theinvention, partially cut away;

FIG. 2 is a transverse sectional view through a supporting upright;

Fit 3 is a view similar to that of FIG. 2, at the location of a bracket;

FIG. 4 is a view in longitudinal section, of an upright at the locationof a bracket;

FIG. 5 and 6 are views similar to FIG. 4 and show two variantembodiments;

FIG. 7 illustrates how an upright can be attached to the top part of aroom;

FIG. 8 illustrates an elevational view ofa partition for a railway coachcompartment;

FIG. 9 is a section on the line IXIX of FIG. 8; and

FIG. 10 illustrates a detail of an upright.

The partition shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 is constituted by supporting pillersor uprights faced with decorative panels and interconnected by spacers.

Each of these supporting uprights is constituted by two profiledsections 1 having a substantially U-shaped cross'section. The flange 1ais slightly longer than the flange lb with which it is parallel, this infact by a distance substantially equal to the thickness of the profiledsection (FIG. 2). The portion 10, or web of the profiled section, whichlinks the two flanges 1a and lb,

projects slightly beyond the shorter flange lb, as shown in 1d. The twoprofiled sections are arranged in opposite directions in order toconstitute a piller of substantially rectangular cross-section, anopening 2 thus being formed between the flange la of each of theprofiled sections and the adjacent flange lb of the particular other.The two profiled sections 1 are attached to one another by welding forexample.

The base of each upright rests upon the floor 3 through the medium ofafooting or plinth of elastomeric material, in which said base isinserted.

Each of the openings 2 is traversed by a component 5 projecting ateither side of the piller and constituting a double bracket. The face 1dof each of the profiled sections is to this end provided with anaperture 6 communicating with said associated opening.

The brackets 5 are attached to the uprights for example by means of nuts7 which have previously been fixed to the internal face of the flange1b., and screws 8 which co-operate with said nuts (FIG. 3). Equally, asingle bolt passing through the whole of the upright could be used toachieve the simultaneous attachment thereto of the two double brackets.

The assembly of the uprights is lined with two decorative panels 9a and9 which are applied on the portions 10 of the profiled sections 1 andcontain apertures 10 which pass the brackets 5. A sound-damping material11, for example glass wool, can be arranged in the space defined betweenthe panels 90 and 9b by the pillers.

It will be appreciated from the preceding description that the finishedpartition has a relatively low weight and is a good acoustic insulator,vibrations from the floor 3 not being transmitted to it. The attachmentof the brackets S is completely invisible and does not necessitate anyprojecting part on the external faces of the partition, these latterfaces are perfectly smooth.

Instead of being made as a single component, each double bracket can beconstituted by two separate brackets 5a and 5b. In this case, thatportion of each bracket which is located in the opening 2 has a lowerheight, in fact half the normal height if the two brackets 5a and 5b areidentical (FIGS. 4 and 5). This bracket section may pass through onlyone of the external faces of the piller, the aperture 6 then having aheight equal to this section (FIG. 4). It is preferable, however, wherethe weight carried by the bracket is to be fairly high, for this sectionto pass through both external faces of the piller, the aperture 6 thenhaving the same height as the brackets and being partially traversed bythe bracket 5a and partially by the bracket 5b (FIG. 5).

Self-evidently, the partition may be fitted with brackets on only one ofits faces (FIG. 6). That portion of the bracket which is located in theopening 2 may pass through only one of the external faces of theupright, as shown in FIG. 6, or may for that matter pass through bothfaces thereof.

In order to maintain the top part of the partition in position, the topframing of the room in which the partition is set up, may comprise aturned-down sheet metal portion 12 equipped with lugs 120 each of whichis engaged in a block of elastomeric material 13 arranged in the top endof an upright 1, the assembly being fixed to said upright by screws 14and nuts 15 (FIG. 7).

FIGS. 8 to 10 illustrate the application of the invention to railwaycoaches.

Here, the partition is arranged between two compartments. Seats 17 abovewhich there is a stick rack 18, are arranged at either side of thepartition. The brackets 5 are used to carry a luggage rack 19.

The facing panels provided on each side of the partition number 3 inthis case, which are arranged one above the other. The bottom panel 20ais located at its bottom end by a profiled section 21 attached to theuprights. The top edge of this panel is located a little below the topedge of the seats 17; the panel is therefore concealed and its externalappearance is therefore unimportant.

The panel 20a is assembled, by a profiled section 22 of l-I-section,with flanges of unequal length, to a panel 20b which extendssubstantially up to the ceiling. The top panel 200 is engaged throughits top edge, in a profiled section 23 attached to the pillers l. Thebottom edge of the panel 20c and the top edge of the panel 20b are bothmaintained in position by a profiled section 24 which forms a protectivebar. This profiled section is attached to the uprights l by stops 25which are inserted into the profiled section and each comprise a lug 25aengaging in an aperture 26 in the external face of the piller, where itlocked by downward displacement.

Assembly is carried out by successively fitting the panel 20a, the panel20b, the profiled section 24 and the panel 20c which secures the stops25 in position, and finally by fitting the profiled section 23.Inversely, the removal of the latter profiled section, enables thevarious panels to be attached.

The panel 20b can contain openings 27 designed to take the frames 28 ofmirrors or photographs. These frames are carried by profiled sections 29fixed to the internal face of the panel 20b and are held in position bya surround 30 ofT-shaped cross-section, force-fitted in the opening 27.

It will be seen therefore that there is no visible fixing andthat themirrors or photographs which are fitted are located substantially in thesame plane as the panels 20b; the space defined between the panels andpossibly containing a sound-damping material 11, can also be used forthe laying of heating pipes or again for electrical conductors to supplylights above the seats 17.

It goes without saying that the invention is in no way limited to theembodiment described and illustrated here but extends instead to all thepossible variant embodiments.

What I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent ofthe United States is l. A partition constituted by supporting pillers oruprights lined with facing panels, wherein each of the piller's oruprights is constituted by two profiled substantially U-shaped sectionsfacing in opposite directions and fitted into one another, each of whichsections has a web and two flange portions, the web portion of at leastone of the profiled sections, which links the two flanges thereof,extending beyond a web which is disposed inside the particular otherprofiled section and acting as a stop for the neighbouring flange ofsaid other profiled sections so that a space is formed between theinternal flange of the first profiled section and the adjacent flange ofthe second profiled section, which latter flange forms one of theexternal faces of the upright, and wherein at least one supportingbracket is disposed in said space, fixed to the upright by fixing meansengaging an aperture provided in at least one of the external faces ofthe upright.

2. A partition as claimed in claim 1, wherein the flange in the profiledsection which is located at the side at which the web is extended, isshorter than the other flange by a distance substantially equal to thethickness of said web.

3. A partition as claimed in claim 1, wherein the supporting bracket isengaged in both external faces of the upright.

4. A partition as claimed in claim 1, wherein the bracket comprises twoportions, each of which projects away from one of the external faces ofthe upright.

5. A partition as claimed in one of the claim 1, wherein two brackets,each of which projects beyond one of the external faces of the upright,comprise a portion of reduced height, and wherein the two ends of thetwo brackets are engaged in the same opening in the upright.

6. A partition as claimed in claim 1, wherein the bottom part of eachupright has a shock-absorbing footing or plinth of elastomatic material,and wherein a sounddamping material is arranged between the two facingpanels.

7. A partition as claimed in claim 1, where the top part of the room isin which the partition is set up, comprises a down-turned portionequipped with lugs each of which is engaged in a block of elastomericmaterial disposed at the top end of an upright, the assembly being fixedto this upright.

8. A partition as claimed in claim 1, in which the facing panelcomprises at least one opening for the frame of a mirror or photograph,wherein the panel is provided, at the location of the opening, with aninternal profiled section serving to support the frame; and in that thelatter is held in position by a surround forcefitted in said opening.

9. A railway coach including a partition as claimed in claim 1.

10. A railway coach as claimed in claim 9, wherein each facing panelcomprises a first bottom panel extending substantially up to the toppart of the seats and whose bottom edge is held in position by aprofiled section attached to the uprights, a second intermediate panelassembled to the first by a profiled section and a third, top panelwhose top edge is held in position by a profiled section attached to theuprights, the bottom edge of said top panel and the top edge of theintermediate panel being located by one and the same profiled sectionwhich is attached in detachable manner to the uprights.

1. A partition constituted by supporting pillers or uprights lined withfacing panels, wherein each of the pillers or uprights is constituted bytwo profiled substantially U-shaped sections facing in oppositedirections and fitted into one another, each of which sections has a weband two flange portions, the web portion of at least one of the profiledsections, which links the two flanges thereof, extending beyond a webwhich is disposed inside the particular other profiled section andacting as a stop for the neighbouring flange of said other profiledsections so that a space is formed between the internal flange of thefirst profiled section and the adjacent flange of the second profiledsection, which latter flange forms one of the external faces of theupright, and wherein at least one supporting bracket is disposed in saidspace, fixed to the upright by fixing means engaging an apertureprovided in at least one of the external faces of the upright.
 2. Apartition as claimed in claim 1, wherein the flange in the profiledsection which is located at the side at which the web is extended, isshorter than the other flange by a distance substantially equal to thethickness of said web.
 3. A partition as claimed in claim 1, wherein thesupporting bracket is engaged in both external faces of the upright. 4.A partition as claimed in claim 1, wherein the bracket comprises twoportions, each of which projects away from one of the external faces ofthe upright.
 5. A partition as claimed in one of the claim 1, whereintwo brackets, each of which projects beyond one of the external faces ofthe upright, comprise a portion of reduced height, and wherein the twoends of the two brackets are engaged in the same opening in the upright.6. A partition as claimed in claim 1, wherein the bottom part of eachupright has a shock-absorbing footing or plinth of elastomatic material,and wherein a sound-damping material is arranged between the two facingpanels.
 7. A partition as claimed in claim 1, where the top part of theroom is in which the partition is set up, comprises a down-turnedportion equipped with lugs each of which is engaged in a block ofelastomeric material disposed at the top end of an upright, the assemblybeing fixed to this upright.
 8. A partition as claimed in claim 1, inwhich the facing panel comprises at least one opening for the frame of amirror or photograph, wherein the panel is provided, at the location ofthe opening, with an internal profiled section serving to support theframe; and in that the latter is held in position by a surroundforce-fitted in said opening.
 9. A railway coach including a partitionas claimed in claim
 1. 10. A railway coach as claimed in claim 9,wherein each facing panel comprises a first bottom panel extendingsubstantially up to thE top part of the seats and whose bottom edge isheld in position by a profiled section attached to the uprights, asecond intermediate panel assembled to the first by a profiled sectionand a third, top panel whose top edge is held in position by a profiledsection attached to the uprights, the bottom edge of said top panel andthe top edge of the intermediate panel being located by one and the sameprofiled section which is attached in detachable manner to the uprights.